Prosecutor Autrey James, of the Alameda County district attorney’s office, asked the judge Wednesday morning to dismiss the case against York. James told the judge his office had been unable to locate a material witness in the case, and believed that witness to be outside the area. … Continue reading »

Update, Jan. 17: Berkeleyside has been informed by a relative of murder victim Anthony Medearis Jr. that the Alameda County district attorney’s office plans to seek the death penalty in the case against Darnell Williams Jr.

Original story, Jan. 13: The man authorities say gunned down a former friend he suspected of snitching to police has been ordered by an Alameda County Superior Court judge to stand trial.

After approximately three days of testimony, Darnell Williams Jr. was ordered to face 12 felony counts related to the murder of 22-year-old Anthony “Lil Tone” Medearis Jr. of Berkeley last September, and the murder of an 8-year-old girl in Oakland last July.

A Berkeley man who was shot to death after a dice game in West Berkeley last fall was targeted because he was rumored to have been cooperating with police, according to testimony Wednesday in a hearing related to his murder.

Laquana Nuño took the stand in the preliminary hearing against Darnell Williams Jr., after which an Alameda County superior court judge will decide whether there’s enough evidence for Williams to face a trial.

Nuño was also charged with the killing of Anthony “Tone” Medearis Jr. on Sept. 8, 2013. Authorities said she provided a ride to Williams after the Medearis shooting, and tried to help him escape police. She said Wednesday she’d picked him up, but had thought Williams had only robbed Medearis, which she’d try to discourage him from doing in the first place. … Continue reading »

The 7-year-old nephew of a man charged with killing Berkeley father Anthony “Lil Tone” Medearis Jr. in September reluctantly took the stand in a hearing Tuesday to determine whether a trial against Medearis’ accused killer can proceed.

Twenty-two-year-old Darnell Williams Jr. of Oakland is facing murder charges for Medearis’ killing, which authorities said took place after the two men got into a fight after a dice game in West Berkeley on Sept. 8 near Eighth and Camelia streets.

Williams and his friend Laquana Nuno, 28, have been charged with murder in the Medearis case. Their cases are not being tried together at this time, however. (Nuno is alleged only to have given Williams a ride after the shooting of 22-year-old Medearis. She is in custody on murder charges, nonetheless, and scheduled to testify Wednesday.) … Continue reading »

More than 100 people took to the streets last Thursday night in an effort to build community and take a stand against violence in the part of the city that’s seen much of it this year.

Attendees at Ceasefire Walk Against Violence on Oct. 3 in West Berkeley included community organizers, members of congregations from around the city and beyond, and local residents and officials. Several family members and friends of Berkeley’s most recent homicide victim, Anthony Medearis Jr., led part of the procession for much of the night.

Miracle Paul, the aunt of one of Medearis’ sons, said it meant a lot to the family to see so many people turn out for the event. The procession walked a circuit from Good Shepherd Episcopal Church, at Hearst Avenue and Ninth Street, to the site of two of this year’s homicides, at Delaware Street and San Pablo Avenue, then up to Camelia and Eighth streets where Medearis was killed in September.

“It’s too much going on in Berkeley, and we’re so small,” Paul said.

Medearis’ best friend, Gerard Jackson, was among the group. “It meant a lot that everyone came out to grieve with us,” he said. Jackson said he also knew Berkeley homicide victim Jermaine Davis, who was killed in July. Jackson wore memorial necklaces with both of his friends’ photographs on Thursday night. … Continue reading »

A robbery gone awry after a dice game in West Berkeley left one man dead and a child with a bullet wound to the face in early September, according to court documents released Tuesday afternoon by authorities.

Police have charged an Oakland man with the Sept. 8 murder of Anthony Medearis Jr., and say the man was also responsible for the shooting that killed 8-year-old Alaysha Carradine at a slumber party in Oakland on July 17.

On Tuesday, authorities announced that two Oakland men, 27-year-old Joseph Carroll Jr. and 22-year-old Darnell Williams Jr., are believed to be responsible for Carradine’s death. Carroll, said police, is the cousin of Jermaine Davis. (His brother, 23-year-old Coleon Carroll, is currently in jail facing charges along with a second defendant for the shooting death of Gary Ferguson Jr. in Berkeley in 2010. The Carroll brothers have been reported by authorities to be ringleaders in the West Berkeley-based Waterfront gang.) … Continue reading »

Residents, officials and members of community and religious organizations will walk through West Berkeley on Thursday night to take a stand against violence and remember three men killed in shootings earlier this year.

“Our West Berkeley residents are deeply shaken,” wrote Maio in a statement about the walk planned for Thursday, Oct. 3. “I think of this as a broad expression of concern and reclaiming our streets for safety.” … Continue reading »

The 22-year-old lifelong Berkeley resident and father of three children, ages 1, 4 and 7, loved to dance, and was a compassionate family man and “social networker” who was very popular in the community, said two cousins who spoke with Berkeleyside on Monday.

But Medearis also faced difficulties. Relatives said he was raised by his great grandparents and had not found a steady job since leaving high school. There were also some indications from friends that he had ties to Berkeley’s Waterfront gang.

Family members described him as a “wonderful kid” who was “proud of where he was from,” and often wore Cal Berkeley clothing to represent his love for the city.

“He was a shining star, the life of the family,” said cousin Maria Stewart, who said the two grew up much more like siblings. “He was easy going, and always open to advancement.”

Stewart described Medearis as generous, even when he didn’t have much to give.

“He helped other people and, even if he only had 30 cents in his pocket, he’d say, ‘You can have this,'” she said. … Continue reading »

A man in his 20s was shot twice in the chest in West Berkeley around 5:40 p.m. Sunday, and has died of his wounds, according to friends and neighbors.

Berkeley Police spokeswoman Officer Jennifer Coats confirmed at 9:30 p.m. that there had been shooting, that the victim was taken to the hospital, and that he was pronounced dead after he arrived there. She said police were still at Eighth and Camelia, where officers were canvassing for evidence and speaking with witnesses. Homicide detectives were on scene, and the roadway on Eighth south of Camelia remains closed off during the investigation, she said. She said police are not releasing any further details at this time.

The man, who is reported to have attended Berkeley High School, was said by several who knew him to be visiting friends in an apartment near Eighth and Camelia just before the shooting. Neighborhood residents said he was shot near a church on Camelia, then ran through an alley onto Page Street west of Eighth. He ran to a neighbor’s door to ask for help, but then collapsed on the ground, according to witnesses. The victim called out, “Help me, somebody, help me,” according to a woman who came across him on her way to the grocery store, but asked not to be named. “He looked so scared,” she said. … Continue reading »